Buffer.



' 'PATENTED'SEPT. 8,1903.

F. BRUNINGQ 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

N0- MODEL.

, m 0% om I E E. 2 i mm /L 2;?

. E m k 3 m a EJWUM HTOZ Friedrick Bruning 13 al bi/"e1 3 Z witnesses No, 788,288a

Patented September s, 1908.

PATENT OFFICE.

FRIEDRIOK BRU NING, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

BUFFER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 738,288, dated September 8, 1908. Application filed April 2, 1902. $erialNo. 101,032. (No model.)

To ctZZ 1071/0771, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FRIEnRIcK BRUNING, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city of St. Louis, in the State of Missouri, have invented a certain new and useful Buffer, of which the following is such a full, clear, and exact description as will enable any one skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

My invention relates to buffers for railroadcars, and more particularly to that class of buffers used in connection with passengercars.

The object of my invention is to provide a buffer which will act equally well when cars are running on a straight track and when passing around curves.

My invention consists in various novel features and details of construction, all of which are described in the following specification and pointed'out in the claims affixed hereto.

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate a buifer made in accordance with my invention and a portion of the car to which same is attached, Figure 1 is a top plan view. Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a vertical central section. Fig. 4 is a bottom plan view of a portion of the front end of the buffer, and Fig. 5 is a section on the line 5 5 of Fig. 1.

Like marks of reference refer to similar parts in the several views of the drawings.

10, Fig. 3, is the floor of the platform, and 11 the floor of the car.

12 is the platform end timber or bufferbeam, and 13 is the end sill, both of which are arranged under the platform in the usual manner. The beam 12 and end sill 13 are supported by means of outer I-beams 14 and inner I-beams 15. The I-beams 14 and 15 are attached to the body of the car. The outer beams 14 preferably terminate at the first body-transom 16, the inner'bars 15 extending to the second body-transom, as shown in Fig. 2.

is the buffer-head, which is of considerable length, extending almost completely across the end of the car. The buffer-head flange 21.

surrounded by thimbles 36 and 37.

22, formed by cut-away portion of the bufferbeam 12, which portion is covered by means of a guard-plate 23. The buffer-head 20 is provided with two pairs of side lugs 24 and a pair of central lugs 25. To the side lugs 24 .are pivoted side bars 26, and to the central lug 25 is pivoted a central bar 27. The front end of the buffer-beam 12 is rounded and is provided with a central recess 28 and two side recesses 29. The central recess 28 is adapted to receive the lug 25, and the side recesses 29 are adapted to receive the lugs 24. At the rear of the bufferbea1n 12 is arranged an angle-iron 30, and between this angle-iron and end sill 13 are arranged two castings or frames 31, each provided with a pair of crossplates 32- and 33, respectively, preferably formed integral therewith. The side bars 26 pass to the rear through openings in the buffer-beam 12, angle-iron 30, and casting 31. The rear ends of these bars are reduced and made cylindrical, so as to form shoulders 35. The cylindrical portions of the bars 26 pass through the plates and and are These thimbles 36 and 37 are provided with flanges 38 and 39, respectively, which rest against the opposing faces of the plates and 33. Between these flanges 38 and 39 are an ranged buffer-springs 40. When one of the bars 26 is moved rearwardly, its shoulder comes in contact with the thimble 36, surrounding the same, and so compresses the spring 40. \Vhen the said bar is moved forward, the end of the thimble 37 is engaged by means of apin 41, passing through the side bar 26, thus compressing the spring 40. The rear end of the bar 27 is provided with an enlargementor head 43, which bears against a block or cross-head 44, sliding in grooved guideways 45. These guideways'45 are arranged between the an gle-iron and aplate 46,1'esting against the end sill 13. The block 44 is provided with a recess 47, and the plate 46 is provided with a recess 48. In the recesses 47 and 48 are the ends *of a bufl'enspring 49. This spring 49 is made stronger than the springs 40. This can be done by making the spring of heavier material. I prefer, however, to accomplish this result by making thespring 49 a double spring, as shown in the drawings, one spring being placed within the other.

The operation of my bnii'er is as follows: Whenever the buffer-head comes in contact with the buffenhead of another car when the cars are moving on a straight track, the bu [ferheads will contact evenly throughout their entire length, and hence the two bars 26 and the bar 27 will be all forced rearwardly, the bar 27 compressing the spring 49 and the bars 26 compressing springs 40 by means of the shoulders coming in contact with the ends of the thimbles 36. If, however, the cars are moving on a curve one end of the buffer-head 20 will strike the buffer-head of the opposing car. Hence one of the bars 26 will be forced rearwardly, its shoulder 35 coming in contact with the thimble 36 and compressing one of the springs 40. The head will turn its central pivot, thus drawing the other bar 26 forwardly and compressing its spring 40 by means of the pin 41 coming in contact with the end of the thimble 37. It will thus be seen that my buffer acts equally well whether the cars are on a straight track or on a curve.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by-Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. The combination with a car, of a bufferhead, a guideway, a main buffer-spring, a cross-head mounted in said guideway and bearing against said main bufferspring, a main buffer-bar connected to said buffer-head and bearing against said cross-head, auxiliary buffer-bars connected to said buffer-head at either side of said main buffer-bar, and buifersprings for said auxiliary buffer-bars.

2. The combination with the end sill of a car, of a buffer-beam, frames carried by said end sill and buffer-beam and provided with cross-plates, a buffer-head, bars connectedto said buffershead, a pair of thimbles surrounding each of said bars and bearing against said cro ss-plates, bu t'fer-sprin gs between said thimbles, and means for imparting the movement of either of said bars in either direction to one of said thimbles.

3. The combination with the end sill of a car, of a buffer-beam, frames fastened at one end to said sill and at the other end to said buffer-beam and provided with perforated cross-plates, a buffer-head, bars connected to said buffer-head and passing through the perforations in said cross-plates, a pair of thimbles surrounding each of said bars and bearing against said cross-plates, buffer-springs between said thimbles, and means for imparting the movement of either of said bars in either direction to one of said thimbles.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and affixed my seal in the presence of the two subscribing witnesses.

FRIEDRIOK BRUNING. [n s] Vitnesses:

J ONES A Henna, HENRY W. Honnn. 

